Screw-driver.



' E. wALKE-E.

SCREW DRIVER.

APPLIUAVTIONIILED APB.26, 1906.

.Patented .Time 14,1910.

-ArmH/vm i INI/ENIGH umh waz/Cer Y across the screw for the Bpeoicationot Lettera Intent.

Patented J une 14, 1910.

Application illed April 26, 1906. Seri'll No. 313.787.

To all whom 'it may con/cem.'

Be it known that I, EDWIN WALirnn, a citizen of the United States,residmg at Erie, in the county of Erie and State of Pennsylvania, haveinvented a certain new and useful ScrewDriver, of which the following isa specification.

My invention relates to screw drivers, and analogous' tools of thatclass wherein a blade or shank is secured in a handle and adapted foruse in the hands of a workman.

One object of my invention is to provide an improved tool which may beused b y placing it in line with the screw 1n the ordlnary way, or at anangle to the screw,` or purpose of exert-ing leverage thereon.

It is found in many instances that a screw becomes rusted in its socketor in the material `in which it is embedded. The rust joint around thescrew holds it so tightly that it is impossible to start or partiallydis lodge the screw by the aid of an ordinary screw driver. It isnecessary frequently to apply oil or a solvent to a rusted screw beforeit can be started but this is a slow and tedious operation because timeis consumed in soaking the screw with such liquids. Ordinary screwdrivers when held in line with a screw are not satisfactory becausesutlicient leverage cannot be exerted on the head of a rusted screw forturning it, and owing to the tapering shape of such screw driver bladesthey cannot be turned across the screw for acting as a lever thereon. Mynew blade overcomes these diicultics because it is constructed to engagewith a screw head in at least two diterent positions, to-wit:-in linewith the screw, as ordinarily practiced, or across the screw for use asa lever thereon, whereby the tool may turn the screw without breaking orchipping the edges of the nick in the screw cad. I have reduced animproved tool which secures t ese practical advantages, and it has thefurther commercial advantage of being manufactured rapidly and with asmall amount of labor.

In my improved tool, the blade has longitudinal ribs or flanges which,in addition to adding stidness to said blade, provide a number of ed es,either of which is adapted, when the too is placed across the screw, tohave engagement with the slot or nick of said screw, thus ena-blin thetool to be used as a lever in starting t e. screw. The ribs or flangesimpart an irre lar cross sectional form to the blade, an when the bla-deis embedded in the handle, said ribs operate as keys in fastening thehandle s0 firmly in place as to prevent the separation of the parts, andobviate the shank from turning inl the handle.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation of my screw driver adapted'for use in the ordinary way; Fig. 2 is another side elevation showingthe screw driver ada. ted for use in a way to exert considerable everaon the screw; Fig. 3 is a detail view of t e tool shank removed from thehandle; Fig. 4 is a cross-section on the line 4-4 of Fig. 2; Fig. 5 is adet-ail 'fragmentary perspective view, partly in section, of acommercial form of t-he tool shank or blade, and Figs. 6 and 7 are viewssimilar to Fig. 5 of other crosssectional forms of the tool shank orblade which may be employed in the manufacture of the tool.

A designates a blade or shank and B, is a suitable handle in which an@mi portion of the blade or shank is secured, said handle being,preferably, reduced at one end to receive a. suitable metallic ferruleZ2, which prevents splitting of the wood. The handle is shown as havinga ribbed grip ortion, b', but the particular construction o the handleand the material of which it is made are not important, hence they canbe changed and modied at will.

The important feature o my invention consists in the employment of alongitudinally ribbed blade or shank, such as A. This shank in the formof construction shown by Figs. l to 5, inclusive of the drawings, 1scruciform in cross-section, and it consists of a, blade, a, and aplurality of ribs a'. The blade has a working end, c, which may or maynot be beveled as desired, and the ribs a terminate short of or adjacentto, this end c. The end portion of each 'rib is, preferably, reduced inwidth in a suitable way, such as by beveling them at c. The ribs, a',extend the ull length of the blade, a, except at the working en of thetool, and they serve materinlly to stron hen the blade, thus reducingthe size an weight of the tool by the use of less material or stock inthe manufacture of such tools. Another advanta e of the ribbed shank orblade is that the ri s serve as keys in fastening the blade firmly inthe handle. This handle is bored or drilled in one end with a suitablehole or -mg the ribs practically holes, and the end portion of theribbed shank is forced into said bored part pf the handle, thusembedding the shank 1n tbe handle as shown by Fig. 4, the fibers ofthewood handle being displaced during auch operation of embedding the shank1n the handle. b

The particular cross-sectional form ofthe blade or shank is notmaterial, and 1n F1 6 and 7, I have shown otherforms` of t e blade whichmay be employed, particularly for tools of larger sizes which areespeclally adapted for heavy work. In the construction of Fig. 6, theblade, d, 1s shown as hav ing` a plurality of ribs, d', and d2, on therespective sides thereof, said ribs being located within the edges ofthe blade, whereas in Fi 7, the ribs e and e, are located at the e gesof the blade, e. In each form of construction, however, the ribs extendlong1- tudinally of the blade so that they serve to key the end portionthereof in the handle, and they also terminate short of the working endof the blade, as shown. The distance that the ribs terminate from theworking end `of the blade, and the particular shape of the ribs, are notmaterial.

An advantage of my construction from the stand-point of economy in themanufacture, is that the metal may be rolled in the form of rods or barsof any suitable length and of the desired cross-sectional shape. Therods may be out transversely into suitable lengths, and thereafter theribs may be made shorter `than the blade by any suitable treatment, suchas by cutting the tool in proper dies or by grinding the arts.

Although I have shown and escribed my invention as especially adapted tothe mannfacture of screw drivers, 1t will be understood that I do notint-end to restrict it to this particular tool, because the principlethereof may be used in the manufacture of many diifenent kinds of tools,such as chisels, ice picks, and a great variety of articles.

It is not essential in certain classes of tools that the ribs shallextend practically the length of the blade, because the'ribs ma beprovided on that part of the blade which is to be embedded in thehandle; but for certain classes of tools such as screw drivers, I preferto strengthen the blade by extendthe full length of said blade.

My screw driver may be used to good advantage in either of the Waysshown by Figs. 1 and 2. Ordinarily the tool is used by inserting theworkin end, c, in the slot or nick of thc screwhea as in Fig. 1, theblade being in alinemen with the screw. In certain kinds of work,however, it is quite diiiicult to start the screw because it is rustedin place. In such a ease, the driver may be turned at right angles tothe screw, and oni of the ribs, as the rib a', of Fig. 2, may be fittedin the nick or slot of the screw-head, thus allowing the operator toexert considerable leverage on the screw. This adaptation of the screwdriver is an important feature of my invention, because it provides aWorin man with a tool which may be used to good advantage either as alever or as an ordinary driver. This advantage is secured by making theribs and the blade of the same thickness, and by making said blade andribs uniform in thickness throughout their length. It is evident thatthe tool may be placed in either of a numberof positions across thescrew for the edge ofthe blade, or either of the ribs, to lit in thenick or slot, and that when thus placed, the screw may have engagementwith the tool at either of a number of points along the edge of theblade, or a rib thereof.

It is evident that the tool should be made in different sizes, and withblades and ribs of different thicknesses, thus enabling a tool of theproper thickness to have snug engagement with the nick or slot of thescrewhead, and thereby minimize the tendency of the tool to slip out ofplace or to break the edges of the screw-head at the slot or nickthereof. For small and ordinary sizes of screw drivers, the form shownby Figs. l to 5 is well adapted to meet all practical requirements, butfor large screws and heavy work, I may use either form shown by Fig. 6or Fig. 7.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent is 1. A tool comprising a blade, and a solidhandle, said blade having reinforcing ribs which are embedded in thematerial of the handle and key the parts firmly together.

2. A tool comprising a blade, and a solid handle, said blade havingreinforcing ribs which extend longitudinally from a point adjacent tothe working end thereof into the material of said handle, said ribskeying the handle and blade solidly together..

3. In a tool, a blade having a longitudinal reinforcing rib or iin-nge,the latter terminatQ ing short of an active end of the blade, said riband blade each having thin edges adapted for engagement with a nick orslot in a screw-head.

4. In a tool, a tool blade of double cruciform cross-section.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

EDWIN WALKER.

Witnesses:

Jas. H. GRIFFIN, H. I. BERNHARD.

